“Hacks” Cast Is Visibly Shocked as They Win Outstanding Comedy Series at Emmys 2024: Comedy 'Speaks Truth to Power'

Co-creator Paul W. Downs also called for more television that showcases women that are over 60, saying: "About 20% of our population is over 60, and only 3% of those characters [are] on television"

It’s official! Hacks has taken home the award for outstanding comedy series at the 76th annual Primetime Emmy Awards.

Co-creator Paul W. Downs, who accepted the award on Sunday, Sept. 15 alongside the Hacks cast on the Emmys stage, said, "I have no thoughts in my brain. Thank you so much to the academy, let's brace ourselves, I might get emotional. I have to say that we are so lucky to live our dream and make television and we couldn't do it without our Hacks family. all of our writers, all of our cast, all of our crew who make our dreams come true, literally."

"When we pitched this show about two women, one of whom was over 60, we didn't know if we would sell it," he continued, "About 20% of our population is over 60, and only 3% of those characters [are] on television. I would like to see more of them because while I'm a great, young supporting actor, I really want to be a good, old lead."

Writer and director Lucia Aniello added, "Comedy is so important, obviously, to us, and we really feel like it can bridge divides. When you laugh with someone, you have something in common with them. So please, support comedy, it speaks truth to power. It really does, so support your local comedian."

She concluded by adding, "We have to go because we start shooting the next season in five days."

Related: Jean Smart Wants to Know How Hacks Plays Out Next Season After 'Wicked' Move from Hannah Einbinder's Character

Hacks, which premiered its first season in 2021, chronicles the complex relationship between comedian Deborah (Jean Smart) and comedy writer Ava (Hannah Einbinder), who come from two very different generations.

Smart, 72 — who also won an Emmy for outstanding actress in a comedy series — opened up about taking on the role of a comedian in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in June.

“When I read the script, I said, ‘This is everything I could possibly want for my next job,’” she shared. “But I needed to be sure that real stand-ups could believe I was a comic. I had never been a comedian, so they were the real litmus test. And I passed, I think!”

Related: Jean Smart Jokes She's Thrilled About Emmys 2024 Win Because 'I Just Don't Get Enough Attention'

The other nominees for outstanding comedy series included Abbott Elementary, The Bear, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Only Murders in the Building, Palm Royale, Reservation Dogs and What We Do in the Shadows.

Abbott Elementary follows a group of Philadelphia teachers, mockumentary style, as they navigate the challenges of teaching at an inner-city public school. Star and creator Quinta Brunson was inspired by her mom’s experience as a kindergarten teacher when developing the series.

“My mom is the person that you make television or movies for,” Brunson, 34, told The New York Times. “She’s the person that watches TV and laughs and watches a movie and goes gasp! The stuff you write where it’s like, ‘Oh man, this is gonna get them’ — my mom’s the person that gets got. So she’s not interested in giving her opinion or consulting. She couldn't care less."

Abbott Elementary — which returns for a fourth season on Oct. 9 — received a total of nine Emmy nominations in 2024, including for Brunson as well as supporting stars Janelle James, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Tyler James Williams.

Related: Quinta Brunson Says Abbott Elementary Crossover with Mystery Show will 'Change Television as We Know It'

The Bear chronicles fine dining chef Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) coming back to his Chicago hometown to transform a local sandwich shop following the unexpected death of his brother (Jon Bernthal).

Before filming the FX series, White, 33, revealed that he and his costar Ayo Edebiri trained with professional chefs.

“Before we did the pilot, I went to the Institute of Culinary Education in Pasadena,” White explained in a 2022 interview with W. “That’s where I got to know Ayo — we were getting to know one another while cooking, which was nice, since so much of the way Sydney and Carmy communicate [with] one another is through cooking.”

Related: Why The Bear Is Nominated in the Comedy Category for the 2024 Emmys

Curb Your Enthusiasm premiered on HBO in 2000, inspired by an hour-long mockumentary initially intended as a one-off in which Larry David portrays an exaggerated version of himself. The show took a pause in 2011 following season 8 and resumed in 2017. The series earned a total of 55 Emmy nominations and six Golden Globe nominations over the span of 24 years.

“As Curb comes to an end, I will now have the opportunity to finally shed this 'Larry David' persona and become the person God intended me to be — the thoughtful, kind, caring, considerate human being I was until I got derailed by portraying this malignant character,” David joked in December 2023 when Curb announced its final season.

He continued, “And so 'Larry David,' I bid you farewell. Your misanthropy will not be missed. And for those of you who would like to get in touch with me, you can reach me at Doctors Without Borders."

Related: Curb Your Enthusiasm Series Finale: How Larry David's Hit Show Ended After 24 Years and 12 Seasons

Starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, Only Murders in the Building follows three New Yorkers living on the Upper West Side who share a love of true crime podcasts and end up finding themselves in the middle of (a few) true crimes.

Short, 74, told PEOPLE in May that it is a joy to work with costars Martin, 79, and Gomez, 32, on the hit Hulu series, which premiered its fourth season on Aug. 27.

"It's a very, very, very loose, fun-filled set. I think everyone has the same review — that, working on the show, it's really fun and loose, and that's kind of the philosophy of Steve, the way he's always worked, and so is Selena," Short said. "So everyone works in joy and happiness, because we're lucky people."

Related: The Cast of 'Only Murders in the Building': Everything to Know

On Palm Royale, Kristen Wiig  stars as Maxine Simmons, who is trying to gain access to the exclusive Palm Beach high society in 1969 while Carol Burnett takes on the role of Norma, who is described as "the grande dame of Palm Beach high society."

The Saturday Night Live alum told Entertainment Tonight that she was thrilled for the opportunity to work with the comedy legend.

"I literally said today, 'I still can't believe that we work together,'" she shared. "I wanna like verify that it's her. I'm like, 'It's Carol, right? Yeah, I mean, it's Carol.'”

“And for me, just with sketch comedy and everything she did for every person, every woman, she's such an inspiration,” she added. “It was the crew, everyone. I mean, she's just a dream."

Related: Kristen Wiig Says Working with Carol Burnett Has Made Her a 'Better Person': 'I Just Love Her'

Reservation Dogs follows a group of Indigenous teens in Oklahoma who want to make their way to California — and decide they'll do anything to get the money, even if they have to steal it.

Star Devery Jacobs told PEOPLE in 2021 that she is grateful that Reservation Dogs, which was created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi, gives an often-marginalized group its time to shine.

"It's about damn time that Indigenous people are represented on this scale," she shared. "Rarely have we been afforded the opportunity to tell our own stories. It's so perfect that it's a comedy because our communities are actually so funny. And nobody in Western culture really thinks that Indigenous people are anything [except] this idea of the stoic Indian who was being shot in old Western films. Or they'll think of stereotypes like Pocahontas. We haven't had many opportunities to be three-dimensional."

Related: 'Reservation Dogs' ' Devery Jacobs: 'It's About Damn Time' Indigenous People Were Represented on TV

Created by Flight of the Conchords' Jemaine Clement and based on the 2015 film of the same name, What We Do in the Shadows follows the everyday lives of four vampires in Staten Island, New York, who struggle to fit in with the human world — with many snafus along the way.

The show stars Harvey Guillén as Guillermo de la Cruz, Kayvan Novak as Nandor the Relentless, Matt Berry as Laszlo Cravensworth, Natasia Demetriou as Nadja of Antipaxtos,  Mark Proksch as "energy vampire" Colin Robinson and Schaal as The Guide, among many recurring and one-off guest stars like Beanie Feldstein, Nick Kroll, Mark Hamill, Fred Armisen, Doug Jones, Vanessa Bayer, Haley Joel Osment, Sofia Coppola, Patton Oswalt and Taika Waititi.

Proksch said at San Diego Comic-Con in July that  the news of the FX show ending after six seasons "didn't really change the mood too much" when they returned to set.

"We all have a lot of fun on set, and I think like Matt and Paul said it's a good time," he explained. "You don't want to overstay your welcome and you don't want to become a parody of yourself. And I think six seasons in this day and age is just [phenomenal]."

Related: What We Do in the Shadows Cast Says Concluding After 6 Seasons Is a 'Smart Decision': 'It's Ending on a High Note'

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

See PEOPLE's full coverage of the 76th annual Primetime Emmy Awards as they're broadcasting live on ABC from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.